Election 2010, David Carlucci and Andrew Cuomo

Election 2010: Perspectives
In our Westchester and Putnam editions today, we carried a pair of perspective pieces that assessed the results of Tuesday’s election:

Democrats and recovery: Commentary
Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, attributes the Democrats’ failure to their approach to economic recovery after the Great Recession. Weisbrot writes:

… The overwhelming reason for the Democrats’ losses was their failure to take the necessary measures to ensure a robust recovery from the recession. This is a case where it clearly would have been better to fight for something that you want, and lose, than fight for what you don’t want, and win. Had the Democrats fought for a stimulus large enough to move unemployment to more normal levels over two years — and lost the battle in Congress — they would at least have a case that they tried and were stymied by the Republicans. …

Democrats and health reform: Commentary
Grace-Marie Turner, president and founder of the Galen Institute, argues that this year’s massive reform of health care was the bullet that killed Democrats’ chances of retaining control of the house. Turner writes:

… President Obama had promised Democrats who were nervous about voting for the unpopular bill last March that he had their backs: If they voted for his signature legislation, he said he would work relentlessly to overcome public opposition and convince the American people the $1 trillion law was good for them and for the country.

It didn’t work. Despite the sweeteners added to the bill to provide early appeal — such as coverage for pre-existing conditions, allowing 26-year-old “children” to stay on their parents’ health insurance and free preventive care — the American people weren’t convinced. …

David Carlucci: Editorial
We comment on Democrat David Carlucci’s victory in the race for the 38th state Senate seat in Rockland and Orange counties. Carlucci, the Clarkstown Town Clerk, was opposed by Republican Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef. We encourage Carlucci to take up the mantle of the late state Sen. Thomas Morahan. We write:

… Morahan was that rare Albany politician who put his constituents’ interests ahead of his party’s. He also practiced bipartisanship, he didn’t just talk about it. That showed when Morahan backed Gov. David Paterson’s Green Jobs legislation and pulled enough GOP votes along to ensure its passage. Morahan also helped form a Hudson Valley delegation to unite his fellow senators, mostly Democrats, on regional issues.

Carlucci’s campaign made much of his energy to accomplish change. Again Morahan can be a model; he was consistently a prime sponsor of Senate bills, whether he was a member of the majority or minority. Carlucci’s challenger, Republican Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef, had Morahan’s party and family backing. But Carlucci can break even more political barriers — and accomplish more for all his constituents — if he follows the stellar example set by Morahan.

Hasidic bloc: Editorial
We comment on Vanderhoef’s loss in the 38th state Senate district race, one that was sustained even with the support of the Hasidic bloc. We write:

… It is unusual for a candidate to lose the bloc vote and still win a countywide race. More often, the outcome is predicted by the pledge of votes from the religious community. That, though, can change, as well. In the 2007 race for Rockland district attorney, Republican incumbent Michael Bongiorno had counted on receiving the bloc vote in New Square. But that flipped after some late lobbying by then-Gov. Eliot Spitzer. Democratic challenger Thomas Zugibe won the New Square vote, 1,978 to 23. (Kaser, another community known to bloc vote, played it safe that year, splitting the vote between the two candidates.) Countywide, Zugibe beat Bongiorno by just more than 1,200 votes. …

Ed Forbes is the Digital Team Leader at LoHud.com and The Journal News. He holds a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor's degree from St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y. Prior to joining The Journal News in 2008, he was editor of the weekly Lake Placid News in Lake Placid, N.Y. He lives in Mount Kisco with his wife and their dog.